Yan Melbourne

The South Yarra set has a new obsession—an Asian-inflected smokehouse rewriting the playbook on contemporary Chinese fusion. Forget standard banquet fare. We’re talking serious culinary theater. Those with a demanding palate point straight to Yan’s umami-rich duck cigars—a fiercely crisp, elevated take on the spring roll—and slow-smoked beef short ribs boasting an impossibly tender, fat-rendered bite. Pescetarians? Pristine kingfish sashimi and perfectly steamed barramundi hit all the right notes. The space nails that classic Melbourne chic. Moody. Intimate. Undeniably cool. Behind the bar, the mixology is razor-sharp; just let Jack pour you something off-menu. And the finale? A nitrogen-churned coconut ice cream built like a mini mountain over fresh coconut jelly. Pure, unadulterated magic.